


Wonderful Tonight

by Lucyndareads



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Ballroom Dancing, Cisswap, Dress Up, F/F, Genderbending, Rule 63, in-universe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-18
Updated: 2014-12-06
Packaged: 2018-02-13 05:47:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 19,814
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2139318
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lucyndareads/pseuds/Lucyndareads
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's kind of hard to transform from a low-class titan shifter to a high-society lady when all of your lessons are being taught by the woman who's not only your no-nonsense Captain, but also your biggest crush.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> I've been very into fem!Ereri lately, but this was the first fem!Ereri piece I started, some five months ago. I picked it up again a month or so ago, and I decided to turn it into a long piece. 
> 
> I know that the My Fair Lady plot is one of the oldest plots there is.... but shhh i just wanted my ladies in pretty dresses with plenty of UST and sticking up their middle fingers at the rich Sina folks, ok?
> 
> (this fic will be in three parts, i believe, and the fic title and future chapter titles will probably be taken from the song Wonderful Tonight by Eric Clapton)
> 
> Last but not least, many many MANY thanks to the ridiculously talented [shotgunsinlace](http://jaegersaurus.tumblr.com/) for beta-ing. I still cannot believe one of the best writers I've ever read agreed to help me, of all people. Ash, you're the absolute best <3

Eren's counting the cracks in her cell, waiting to be released for the day, when she hears Levi coming.

She knows it's Levi, because no one else sounds like that when they walk. Levi's footsteps are quick, precise, and light. But they contain a firmness, a firmness that reminds Eren of that day in the courtroom and makes the back of her head ache with the reminder of a boot pressing it into the floor, despite her knowing that Levi was reluctantly acting under Commander Smith's orders.

Quickly she stands and salutes, just in time for Levi to reach the bars of her cell. "Good morning, Captain Levi, sir!"

"For fuck's sake, it's too early for that military shit," Levi groans. "Why are you even up and dressed, anyway? Most brats your age sleep for as long as they fucking can."

"I, um… couldn't sleep, Captain," says Eren, but she can't stop her eyes from darting to the bucket in the corner.

Levi looks over at the bucket and sighs. "Another nightmare?" she asks.

Eren looks down at the floor, her eyes hot and spilling tears. "Yes, Captain," she manages, "I'm sorry, Captain."

Eren has suffered from nightmares all her life, starting from when she saved Mikasa by murdering those perverts in the woods, perhaps even earlier. After the fall of Wall Maria, the nightmares only grew worse, and the perverts turned into Titans eating her mother.

And then, Trost. Now, Eren is the Titan that eats her mother, and everyone else she loves. And she wakes up from these nightmares screaming, crying, and very often vomiting into the bucket, if she's lucky enough to make it.

Yeah. It's a glamourous life, the life of a titan shifter.

The only reason that Captain Levi knows about the nightmares is because a night guard reported Eren's screaming, and Levi demanded to know the cause. It's embarrassing and childish, and Levi must think of her as a disgusting and filthy disgrace.

"Don't apologise," Levi says, and Eren looks up in surprise. "It's not your fault, idiot." Her voice is gentle, and her gray eyes are softer than usual, but that only makes it worse. "I'll have someone come and clean it up." She pulls out the key to Eren's cell and unlocks the door. Eren was chained to the bed for the first few days of her stay with the Survey Corps, but eventually it was decided that she could be trusted enough to simply be locked in her cell. Levi holds the door open, and Eren walks out to join her. "I'm walking you to breakfast."

"Yes, Captain," Eren says. They start to walk, but Levi's moving at a slow pace, so Eren assumes she has something to tell her. "Is there something you needed to tell me?" she adds.

"Yeah…" Levi says, and fixes her with a patented sharp grey Levi stare. "Eren, have you ever heard of the Military Ball?"

"Yes, sir," Eren says. She doesn't know the details, but she does know that the Military Ball happens every two years, that it's held at the King's castle in Sina, and that it's extremely lavish, with only the most privileged in attendance.

"Are you aware that representatives of all three branches of the military are practically required to attend?"

"Well, no, but that makes sense," says Eren with a shrug.

Levi lets out an annoyed huff of breath. "Well, I fucking hate that shitty ball. And I hate Erwin for dragging me to it every other year. It's boring as shit, and I have to parade around like Erwin's prized little bitch, not to mention kiss a lot of ass. However," she grudgingly adds, "It's one of our main opportunities to snag funds for the Survey Corps, so I see why it's necessary."

"Oh," says Eren. It's all she can think to say. Why would Levi feel the need to tell her about this?

"Well, it's this year, in about a week's time," Levi continues, "And Erwin has just told me who's gonna go. He and I are going, obviously… and you're going too."

Eren starts in surprise. "Sorry, what?" she says.

"You heard me."

"But… but, sir!" protests Eren, "I'm just a cadet, why am I-"

"'Cause you're also our resident Last Hope of Humanity," Levi says dryly.

"Oh… oh, yeah," Eren says, feeling sick again. She's grown to despise that title, as she doesn't trust herself to keep those she loves alive, let alone save humanity.

"Lots of the higher-ups still have doubts about you, perfectly understandable doubts, I might add," Levi says. "But they don't believe we've got you under control. So, you're gonna show up at a fancy ball, you're gonna wear fancy clothes and makeup, and you're gonna dance nicely and display perfect good-girl manners. They'll see you're a proper civilized monster, they'll be in awe at the power of the Survey Corps, maybe even stop calling us freaks for a day or two, and we'll get money for shit we need. Got it?"

Eren desperately wants to refuse, run back and hide in the slum of her cell, where she belongs, but she knows better. "…Yes, sir."

"Good," Levi says. "Now, last thing: you need dance lessons. And etiquette lessons. I'm guessing you didn't attend any balls in Shiganshina?"

"No, sir."

"That's what I thought. So I'm gonna be giving you those lessons, after dinner every day during the week leading up to the ball."

"O-ok," stutters Eren, feeling her armpits sweat even more than they usually do in the Captain's presence. Lessons. Etiquette lessons. Dance lessons. In the Captain's private quarters. Ok. Alright. She can do this. Can she do this?

"Don't give me that look," snaps Levi, and Eren realises she's been gaping at her superior officer like an idiot. "I may be from the Underground, but I know how to act like a fuckin' lady."

"No, sir, I never suggested-" Eren squeaks.

"Whatever. Get the fuck to breakfast. I need to go tell Erwin the plan's a go."

So Eren gets the fuck to breakfast, feeling really really not hungry, and wondering how in the three Walls she's going to prevent herself from screwing this up.

 

* * *

 

The thing is, there are many problems with this situation.

The first problem is that Eren is about the furthest thing from a polite high-society woman. And she fucking likes it that way. She realized at a very early age that, as a future woman, there were many stifling things expected of her. And soon after this realization, she made herself a promise: she would be as loud and brash as any boy, fight all she wanted, wear pants if she wanted, and say what she wanted.

And sure, it stings when fucking horsefaced Jean Kirshtein calls her a man, or a beast. But Eren would rather be called manly than mind her feminine tongue, or some shit like that.

She never thought she'd need to act ladylike for the Survey Corps, and she's not sure she has it in her.

How is she going to communicate this to Levi? Levi is the most dangerously feminine creature she's ever come across. Her hair is always a silky black bob. She fights Titans in blood-red lipstick and flawless winged eyeliner. Eren only knows those words for makeup because of Jean mocking her for never having used them before.

Compared to Levi- beautiful, petite, Levi- Eren is extremely unladylike. Eren is a hulking creature, more titan than woman.

The second problem is that Mikasa is going to pitch a bitchfit when she learns about this, that Armin will try and fail not to look doubtful that anyone could make Eren a lady, and that Jean is going to laugh until he bursts. And so will the rest of the 104.

The third problem is that Eren may sort of have a very minor tiny little crush on her Captain. Her very minor tiny little crush means that whenever Levi enters the room she has the urge to sit up straight, push her chest out, peacocking to get Levi's attention. It means that she fantasizes during tactics classes about kissing Levi's pouting red lips, or biting Levi's perfect, pale skin. It means that the very smell of Levi- some sort of soap-perfume hybrid- makes her embarrassingly wet. It means that she thinks about Levi when she lies in her cell at night, and touches herself until she moans Levi's name.

It also means that Eren can't stand to think about Levi getting hurt, has nightmares about her dying, desperately wants to hold her, wake up with her in the morning, spend long titan-free years with her.

Yeah. Levi even has her forgetting about titans. So this crush might not be so little, after all.

And Maria, it's embarrassing. What a little dork, she thinks bitterly, getting a crush on her superior officer. There are so many reasons why Levi is _waaaay_ out of her league, including ones such as the fact that Eren is about as gorgeous as a potato, and the fact that Levi is clearly annoyed by Eren's very presence. Not to mention Eren doesn't even know if Levi would be into girls.

Ok, so it's totally hopeless.

Fuck.

 

* * *

 

As Eren expected, Mikasa does not take the news well.

"What the fuck? They're forcing you to parade around like some kind of _trophy_?"

"No, it's not like that, Mikasa!" Eren insists. "They need me there to prove that I'm an asset and not a liability."

"That doesn't explain why you need to spend so much time with that shrimpy bitch," spits Mikasa.

"Mikasa! Captain Levi is doing me a favour!" insists Eren.

"Oh, sure," huffs Mikasa, "But I bet she's expecting you to do her some sort of sick 'favour' as payback."

"Mikasa!" Eren says in a scolding voice, but she's played this game before. There's no placating Mikasa when it comes to Levi. In desperation, Eren gives Armin a pleading look.

Armin sighs and rubs his nose uncomfortably. "It does make sense, Mikasa," he says gently. "It's actually the perfect plan for the people in the inner walls to see how human Eren really is. And I'm sure Commander Erwin has his reasons for asking Captain Levi to do it."

"Thank you, Armin," Eren says genuinely, but Mikasa just scoffs.

"If she hurts you, I'll break her kneecaps," she says calmly.

"Oh  _please_ don't do that," whines Eren in exasperation.

Mikasa shrugs. "If she hurts you, I'll have no other choice."

"Well, she won't hurt me," Eren says. 

Mikasa still isn't convinced. "Eren, you have to be careful-"

"Mikasa," says Eren wearily. "What's the worst that could possibly happen?"  


	2. Do I look alright?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a long and arduous road to the ball. Eren must face challenges such as mastering the curtsy, engaging in small talk, learning dining etiquette, dancing, donning fancy attire.... and not exposing her true feelings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ayyyy sorry it's been a while! please enjoy the first official part of my fic!!!!

Eren downs her dinner quickly so that she can shower and dress in clean clothes before her first lesson. Levi didn't order her to do so, but she figures it's a wise move.

She arrives at their appointed meeting spot right on time. She gently knocks three times, and hears a gruff  'Come in, Eren'.

Eren walks into the room, and looks around in slight bemusement. It's a reasonably large room that Levi explained is usually used for training on rainy days. It's mostly empty, except for a table and two chairs over in the righthand corner.

"You ready to become a member of high society, brat?"

The moment Eren sees Levi, she can't believe she was looking at anything else in the room.

Levi is wearing a white blouse, probably the same one she wears with her military uniform, but her cravat's gone, and she's left three buttons down from the collar unbuttoned, milky skin peeking out. The blouse is neatly tucked into high waisted loose black dress pants, and the sleeves are neatly folded back, revealing part of Levi's beautifully muscular forearms. On her feet are black high-heeled shoes, which don't seem to hamper her graceful movements in the slightest. Her posture seems somewhat relaxed, Eren notes, and her hair is slightly more tousled than usual.

After a moment, Eren remembers that Levi asked her a question. "Oh! Um, yes, sir. I'll do my best." she says, and salutes.

"At ease," Levi says flatly. "First things first, you have to relax. Yeah, I'm in civilian clothes. This after-dinner time is usually my me-time, and I'm not going to get all dressed up in my uniform and shit just to watch you sweat and stutter in front of me. Alright?"

"Yes, sir," Eren says, dropping her salute and taking a deep breath.

"Ok, good," Levi says, "Let's get going. We're gonna start with formal greetings." She walks up to Eren, her hips swinging hypnotically, possibly accentuated because of the high heels. Eren swallows thickly, trying to keep her eyes on her captain's face. Levi stops sharply when she's about two feet away from Eren, and says, "When you are introduced to anyone at the ball, there's a strict code of etiquette you'll have to follow. When you meet another lady, you and her will both curtsy."

"Um... ok," Eren says, "But what's a curtsy?"

Levi's eyebrows raise slightly, then she sighs. "It's like a kind of bow for women, which is stupid and sexist but whatever. You're gonna bow your head slightly, pinch the edges of your dress (which obviously you'll be wearing when the time comes), place your right foot behind your left, and bend down with your knees. Then you straighten up and return to normal. Here, I'll show you."

Eren watches, trying not to gape, as Levi slips into a curtsy. It's gentle, it's graceful, and she can't possibly fathom replicating it.

But Levi forces her to, again and again, calling out things like "Back straight!" and "Don't stick out your ass!" She tries again and again until she can execute it up to Levi's standards, or as Levi says, "Close enough."

"Now," Levi says, "After you and the other lady curtsy, you'll introduce yourselves. The woman with the highest rank in society goes first, which means that both of us will always go second. You're going to say, "Eren Jaeger, Cadet in the Survey Corps. Clear?"

"Yes," Eren says softly, somewhat frustrated by Levi's words. She doesn't like the idea of Levi being labeled the lowest of society.

"Good. Now, when you meet a guy, it's a bit different," Levi says. "You're still gonna curtsy, but he's gonna bow. Then you'll introduce yourself first, he'll introduce himself second,  and then- depending on the guy- he's gonna take your hand and kiss it."

"Excuse me?" Eren blurts, thinking she heard wrong.

"Kiss it, you know, like this," Levi says. Before Eren can realize what going on, Levi's already taking her hand and kissing the back of it. She snatches it back, and it burns where Levi's lips touched her. "It's weird, I know, but it's considered polite for rich people," Levi adds, misreading her expression as one of disgust instead of one of flushed desire.

"O-ok," Eren manages. "I think I get it now."

"Let's just try both greetings a few more times," Levi insists. "I won't kiss you again, Eren, I promise," she adds with a smirk.

"I just... I wasn't expecting it!" says Eren hotly.

Levi's hint of a smile changes subtly, going from sarcastic to sad and then vanishing completely. "I know it, kid. Ok, let's try it again."

"Ok," Eren says cautiously, unsure of what just happened.

They try both greetings a dozen times each, Levi correcting every minuscule mistake Eren makes. Then Levi says, "I think you've got it down," and the sigh of relief Eren huffs in response is quite loud.

Levi heads over to the table, sitting carefully down in one of the chairs and gesturing for Eren to sit in the other one.

"Oh shit, I almost forgot," Levi says, "If you're in a group of people and you're being introduced to another group of people, the person of highest rank in the group will introduce you all to the other group. That'll happen a few times, I'm sure. Erwin will say your name, and you'll step forward and curtsy and pretend you're happy to meet whoever you're meeting."

"Ok," Eren says.

"Alright, says Levi, "One more thing before I let you go: small talk. This won't take too long."

"Wait," Eren says nervously. "Do you mean I'll actually have to talk to people?"

"Of course," Levi says, raising an eyebrow, "You thought you'd just stand in a corner and look pretty?"

"No, I just..." Eren's trying to word this in a way that doesn't sound completely idiotic. "Just, whenever I speak... I'm not good with words, or people, really... and I tend to upset people."

"Hmph," Levi grunts, "And I'm a cheery charismatic social butterfly, right?"

Eren frowns. Although Levi is definitely not cheery, or very social, she does emanate a certain powerful charisma. In Eren's opinion.

"You don't need to dazzle them with wit or anything," Levi continues. "All you need to do is know certain things to say, and certain things you must absolutely not say."

"...Alright," Eren says.

"Alright," Levi repeats. "Some things that you're gonna wanna talk about. First off, obviously, how great a commander Erwin is. But try not to let him hear you, because the bastard's ego is already large enough as it is."

"Um, ok," Eren says. She's still not sure if Erwin and Levi are in a serious long-term relationship, casually fucking, best friends, or sworn enemies. It's really difficult to tell from the way they act towards each other.

"Next," Levi says, "Tell them only good things about your shifting shit. Talk about how you pushed that boulder into the wall at Trost, tell them training is going well, lie and say that Hanji is a wonderful and completely sane teacher."

"Alright," Eren says with a nod. She's not entirely sure about Levi and Hanji either. Could they be in the relationship, instead of Erwin? Or are both of them with Erwin? Are the three of them in a relationship? Why is she thinking about this when Levi is talking?

"Oh, also lie and tell them that I'm a wonderful and patient Captain, if you can. Feel free to tell them about my great ass, too," Levi deadpans.

"...Right." Eren doesn't trust herself to even comment on this.

"Finally," Levi says, "Tell them that we could do so much more... if we had the money. That's very important."

Eren nods again. "Ok, I got it."

"You sure?"

"Yes," Eren says firmly.

Levi nods in approval. "Alright," she says. "Next: Things you should absolutely fuckin' not talk about. First off: say nothing about anything bad the Corps has ever done. Nothing about the large amount of fatalities, about how little we've discovered, nothing like that."

Eren nods.

 "Secondly," Levi continues, "Don't reveal even the slightest detail about our military procedures, or how you turn into a titan."

"But why, sir?" Eren asks before she can stop herself.

"Erwin says we can't trust these shitty rich people not to use our tactics against us," Levi says. "That's important, Eren. Don't trust any of them."

"Ok," Eren says. There's a small pit in her stomach.

"Ok," Levi says. Suddenly she stands up, Eren nervously following her lead. "With that, I think we're about done here. Thank god. Try and remember everything I just taught you? I really fucking hate repeating myself."

"Yes, sir!" Eren says, maybe a little too loudly. "I'll remember everything."

"That's the shit I like to hear," Levi responds, as both of them head for the exit. "Oh, and don't eat dinner before we meet tomorrow. We're doing table manners next."

Levi walks Eren back to her cell, watches her walk inside, locks the cell door, and begins to leave.

"Good night, Captain!" Eren calls out in a moment of stupidity and desperation.

Levi pauses at the door of the cellblock. "Good night, Eren," she says without turning around. Then she leaves.

Eren flops down on her cot and groans loudly into the mattress.

 

* * *

 

Eren comes to the next lesson in low spirits.

After lunch today, Jean overheard her telling Mikasa and Armin about her first lesson with Levi, and proceeded to provoke her until she lunged at him.

As always, she kicked his ass, which was cool. But Levi caught them, of course, and pulled Eren off Jean by her hair, which hurt like a bitch.

Eren expected a lecture, a punishment, something. But all Levi said was, "Childish," and then she walked away without another word.

The word hit her like a slap. And even now as she waits in the hallway, the memory brings a few tears of shame and anger to her eyes. Also, if she's being perfectly honest, she's pretty hungry.

"Come in," she hears from the other side of the door. Taking a deep breath, Eren turns the doorknob and enters the room.

The room looks the same, except this time the table has been moved to the center of the room, and is now set with two places, plates and napkins and cups and way too much silverware for two people. The plates are covered in food, but it's the standard military fare that Eren is used to.

Levi's sitting on the chair facing the door. She stands up and walks toward Eren. Eren dimly notes that Levi's wearing a very similar ensemble as last time.

"Evening," Levi says. She curtseys, waits. It takes a moment for Eren to realise what's going on, but it clicks she quickly stumbles into a curtsey. "Captain Levi, of the Survey Corps," Levi continues.

"Eren Jaeger, Cadet in the Survey Corps," Eren says.

Levi nods. "Clumsy, but passable," she says. "We'll work on it a little more."

"Yes, sir," Eren mumbles.

Frowning at her, Levi asks, "What's that shitty pout for?"

She fidgets under the spotlight of Levi's glare. "Nothing," she finally says.

"Uh-huh," Levi says, not buying it. "Does 'nothing' mean 'I'm still embarrassed that my captain chastised me for fighting today'?"

Eren doesn't reply, but her expression is probably enough of an answer.

"Eren," Levi says, "I shouldn't have to fuckin' tell you that rolling around on the ground flirting is not something the ideal high society member takes part in."

"I wasn't flirting!" blurts Eren, her fists clenched. Levi raises an eyebrow, so Eren relaxes. "I'm sorry, Captain," she says.

Levi nods her head. "Don't let me catch you at it again."

"But, sir!" Eren protests before she can help it. "Jean deserved to get his ass kicked... sir."

"Oh?" Levi raises her eyebrow. "And why's that?"

"Because..." Eren looks at her feet, trying to find a way to put it into words. "Because he makes me feel... he embarrasses me. Even before these lessons started he would call me a man, tell me I would never find a husband because no man could ever want me. He's called me an animal, often an ape. Which is bullshit because he has no idea what that is, he was just repeating something he heard from Armin, probably-"

"Eren," Levi interrupts, her voice as sharp as their steel blades. "Look at me." Obediently, Eren looks up into Levi's austere gaze. "Listen. Kirschtein is an idiot. He feels threatened by you because you're a woman who can beat him up, and your intensity scares him, so the only way he can make himself feel comfortable is by making you miserable."

Eren frowns. "How do you-"

"I pay attention," Levi says. "And you don't need to fit in a certain box to be considered a woman. If you consider yourself a woman, then you are a woman. Case closed."

This speech reminds Eren so much of her own thoughts on the matter that she gasps out loud.

"Of course," Levi continues, somewhat awkwardly, "I guess I'm being a bit hypocritical, considering I'm turning you into the stereotypical 'lady'. But, ugh, fuck, what I'm trying to say is-"

"No, no, I get it!" says Eren quickly. "I understand. That's exactly what I think! I've... yeah, I agree."

"Oh," Levi says. "Well, I'm glad. Just... ignore him, or try your best, ok? Getting into fights like that... they aren't worth it. Trust me."

"I'll do my best," Eren says.

There's a short silence, which her stomach decides is the perfect time to rumble loudly. She winces, but all Levi does is snort.

"Ok, calm down, we'll get to the eating soon," promises Levi. "Sit."  

Eren chooses the chair opposite the one Levi was seated in when she first entered the room. Levi follows, standing right behind her.

"Captain, um... there's a lot of extra silverware here, isn't there?" Eren says, looking at the multiple forks, knives, and spoons.

"The fancier the dinner, the more silverware needed," Levi explains. "The rich have boring lives so they need really complicated meals to spice everything up."

"Seriously?" Eren says exasperatedly. "Do they do anything  simple? Fuckin' rich assholes."

"You're tellin' me," says Levi.

It takes about thirty agonizing minutes for Levi to cover everything from which silverware is for appetizers to the proper way of swirling pasta around a fork to where the napkin goes once the meal is over. Eren's only allowed to eat a few bites of the meal during this lesson, and only so Levi can ensure that she's chewing with her mouth closed.

Finally, Levi sits back in her own chair with a sigh. "I guess  that's everything I can think of teaching you."

"Can... can I eat now?" Eren asks, trying not to whine. Her stomach feels bottomless.

"Go ahead," Levi says, "Just remember what I taught you."

Eren tries her best, but it's hard to eat soup and slightly stale bread and act like she's at a first-class dinner.

As she's finishing up her bread, she looks up at Levi to confirm she's doing the right thing. But Levi isn't even looking at her; she's eating her own food.

This is when Eren realises that she's sharing a meal with Captain Levi. The revelation makes her choke on her mouthful of bread.

"Are you alright?" Levi asks, looking at her bemusedly.

"Ha... yeah," says Eren hoarsely. "Something went down the wrong pipe."

"Well don't let it happen at the Ball," Levi says, but her tone is mild.

Eren searches for something else to say. "I- um, I really appreciate you taking time out of your day to teach me these things, sir. I'm sorry I'm so ignorant."

"You're not ignorant," Levi replies, picking up her tea to sip at it. "You've never needed to know anything like this in your life. Believe me, I understand. You think I was born in Sina like Hanji and Erwin? No fuckin' way."

"Hanji and Erwin were born in Sina?" Eren asks, dumbfounded.

Levi nods as she puts down her tea. "Erwin was the son of a noble and a prostitute, so he was always looked down on as the bastard child. Probably why he had no problem leaving the inner walls to come out here and die."

"Oh," Eren says. It's all she can think to say.

"Hanji wasn't exactly of noble birth," Levi continues, "But they were the completely legitimate child of two well-off Sina citizens. Their natural brilliant weirdness, obviously not inherited from either of their boring asshole parents, made them stick out like a sore thumb, and they quit that life happily."

Eren's head is reeling from all the information she just received. She never really thought of any of the officers as anything but officers, though in retrospect that was quite foolish of her. Of course they'd have lives outside of the military. But even if she'd have realised that, she'd never have guessed that they'd have such interesting ones.

Now she bravely asks, "So... you were-"

"I wasn't born in Sina," Levi says. She suddenly sounds exhausted. "I was born in the underground."

So Petra was telling the truth. "You- you mean-"

"Yeah, it exists," says Levi. "It exists, and it's hell. Utter hell. End of discussion." She sounds like she's about to be sick.

"Oh," Eren says meekly, looking at her plate. "I... ok."

There's a short silence, that's finally broken by Levi.

"Fuck," she says gruffly. "Eren, get out. I'm done for the night."

Immediately Eren's eyes start to burn, and she curses herself. No goddamnit, no, she can't cry in front of Levi, especially since she's the one who fucked up and pried too much and ruined everything. "Yessir," she manages, her voice shaky. Quickly she gets up, grabbing her plate and wondering where to put it to clean it.

"I'll do it," says Levi without looking her way. "Get out."

Eren doesn't trust herself to speak another word. Instead, she nods her head, tries to subtly wipe a tear from her left eye, and hurries out of the room.

The moment she shuts the door (Oh fuck, did it slam? It totally slammed. Fuck, why does she keep fucking up?), she breaks into a run.

Thank every god she doesn't run into anyone on the way to her cell. She gets there quickly, collapsing onto her bed and dripping tears onto the sheets.

Eren doesn't usually cry like this anymore, but Levi makes her so emotional it feels like she's overflowing. When Levi is happy, she's ecstatic, and when Levi's unhappy...

Why did she ever think she could do this? Spend so much time with Levi without letting her affections get the best of her?

It's not long after that she hears Levi walking down the stairs, heading towards her cell to lock her in. She quickly rolls to face the wall, feigning sleep and praying Levi doesn't try and speak to her.

Sadly but not surprisingly, her prayers are not answered.

"Oi, kid." Levi's voice is emotionless and impossible to read.

Eren remains silent and still.

"I know you're awake," she says.

Eren stiffens. "How?" she demands, sitting up.

When her eyes adjust, she sees Levi is smiling slightly. "I didn't," she says. "I just thought I'd give it a try."

"Oh..." Eren says slowly, feeling her ears grow hot. "Well... that's unfair."

Levi snorts. "Sorry," she says, not sounding very sorry at all, "But we need to talk."

"I'm sorry I pried, Levi, I swear!" says Eren hurriedly. "I didn't mean to... I was nosy, and that's-"

"Eren," Levi interrupts, "You don't owe me a fuckin' apology, and you weren't being nosy. You were following a natural train of discussion that I had started. It was my mistake."

"Oh," Eren says. She didn't expect this to be Levi's reaction, and she's not sure what to say next. "So... should you be apologising, then?" 

Levi barks out a laugh. "You're a little shit, you know that?"  she says mildly, and Eren relaxes.

"So I'll come again tomorrow, same time?" she asks.

"Yup," Levi says, "And get ready, 'cause we're gonna dance."

"Dance?" blurts Eren.

Levi raises an eyebrow. "Yeah, dance. It's a ball, dumbass."

Eren doesn't know much about proper dancing, but she does know that it involves being graceful. Something she's not terribly familiar with.

Aloud, however, all she says is, "I'll be there."

"Of course you will," replies Levi. Then she turns to leave.

"Captain?" Eren calls out bravely. She can't see Levi, but she can hear her footsteps stop.

"Yes?"

"If you... if you ever want to talk about your past..." Eren swallows nervously. "I'm here."

A pause. Then, "I'll keep that in mind, Eren."

The response is better than Eren hoped, and she smiles slightly as she says, "Goodnight, Captain."

"Goodnight, Eren."

 

* * *

 

"Eren, you're leading again," Levi says sharply, stopping in her tracks.

Barely stopping herself from crashing into Levi, Eren lets out a noise of frustration. "Damn it, really? I tried so hard that time."

"What part of 'use your left foot first and let me move you around' is so hard for you to comprehend?" snaps Levi.

Eren shrugs. "I dunno... it just, feels more natural to lead?"

Levi sighs. "Of course it does."

Eren really should have known that dancing would be the most difficult part of this entire enterprise. At least every other form of etiquette didn't involve invading Levi's personal space, touching her so intimately. For the past half hour or so, Eren's been tripping over her own feet, jumping whenever Levi's breath hits her skin. She's sweating a bit, and trying to keep from blushing.

"Why do I even have to follow?" asks Eren.

"Because the lady always follows," Levi says wearily.

"Well, that's bullshit," says Eren.

"Preaching to the choir, kid," says Levi, slapping Eren's cheek lightly. "But those are the rules."

Eren's cheek burns, and not because the slap did any damage. "O-ok," she says, "I'll try again." Turning her head to the side to avoid Levi's gaze, she reaches out to put her hand on Levi's shoulder, holding out her other hand for Levi to take.

But Levi doesn't take Eren's hand. After an awkward pause, she mumbles, "Uh... Eren?"

"Yeah?"

"...Your hand is on my boob."

Eren whips around to see, with horror, that her hand is indeed firmly attached to her captain's left breast. With a small squeak of horror, she jumps away from Levi. "Sorry! Captain, I'm so sorry, I wasn't looking! Fuck, shit, I'm sorry!"

Levi's just standing there, looking a little lost for words. There's a redness to her cheeks that Eren chalks up to shocked anger. Of course Eren Jaeger would be the fucking idiot who felt up Humanity's Strongest.

She cringes, expected the worst, but all Levi says is, "Don't let it happen again, don't worry about it, let's keep going."

And so they keep going.

Finally, Levi sighs and steps back. "I guess that's as far as we can get, tonight. You've got the waltz down, pretty much, and that's the most important. There are a lot of rich people who can't dance for shit, and so they play the waltz a whole lot, since it's the easiest."

"You're very good," Eren says without thinking. Seeing Levi frown at her bewilderedly, she quickly adds, "At dancing, I mean. You're very good at dancing."

It's true, not just a casual compliment. Even in heels, Levi moves with the same sort of grace she possesses while using the maneuver gear. If Eren weren't so focused on not stepping on Levi's feet, she's sure she'd be gaping.

Levi shrugs. "I've had practice," she says. "It's not so hard when-" She breaks off that sentence in favor of an enormous yawn. "Fuck," she says when it's over, wiping one of her eyes. "It's too fuckin' late. I kept you too long."

Holy shit, that yawn was cute.

"That's all right," says Eren hurriedly, "It was my fault, I'm a terrible dancer, I'm sorry."

"Your dancing is fine," Levi says tiredly, "And I'm sick of all your shitty apologies. Just because you're afraid of me, doesn't mean everything is your fault all the time. Relax, will you?"

That's surprisingly candid for Levi, and even the captain herself looks a bit surprised at what came out of her own mouth.

"I'm not afraid of you," says Eren after an extremely awkward pause.

Levi lets out a loud snort. "Bullshit. You practically shake in your boots when I enter a room."

Yeah, Eren thinks, Because I'm imagining you naked like ninety percent of the time. Aloud she says, "I do not! I'm... respectful of you, sir!"

Levi cocks an eyebrow at her. "Respectful," she repeats doubtfully.

"Yeah!" says Eren. "You're my superior officer. I'm not gonna treat you like my equal!"

Something sinks in Levi's expression. "Whatever," she says. "Either way, it's way past your bedtime." With another yawn, she grabs the nearest candle and crooks a finger at Eren, who obediently follows behind her.

 

* * *

 

The rest of Eren's lessons are less noteworthy. She learns a few more dances, reviews small talk and table manners, and stresses about the upcoming ball.

Levi seems a bit muted after the first dancing lesson, for some reason, but Eren treasures every moment of the time they share. She knows that after the ball, the lessons will stop, and she won't see Levi one-on-one anymore.

 

* * *

 

Finally, it's the big day.

Yesterday, as Levi finished up their last lesson, she informed Eren that they would be leaving the next morning, before lunchtime. The ball would start at 20:00, but Levi told Eren that it's considered fashionable to arrive late, so they'll probably arrive at around 21:00.

By some miracle, not only did Eren manage not to vomit when she had woken up in the middle of the night from her usual nightmares, but she also managed to get back to sleep quite quickly. Which is good, because she's gonna need all the rest she can get.

She wakes up at 06:30, as per usual. But right as she's rolling out of bed and rubbing the remnants of sleep out of her eyes, she hears: "Oi."

With a jolt of adrenaline, Eren turns around so fast that she loses her balance, falling onto the floor. "C-captain!" she stutters.

It occurs to her that she's only wearing her dressing gown. It's not sheer or clingy, but it's a hell of a lot less than what Levi has seen her in so far.

"Listen up," Levi says, not bothering to acknowledge Eren's state of obvious discomfort. "We're leaving in a few hours. Unfortunately, we're not gonna have any place to change when we get to the castle, so we're gonna have to change here and sit in our uncomfortable clothes all the way there."

Eren nods, showing she understands. It's at this moment that she wakes up enough to realise that Levi's holding a large bundle of fabric in her hands.

"Speaking of uncomfortable clothes, you're going to wear this," Levi continues, holding up the fabric so Eren can see that it's a fancy dress.

Eren stares at the garment in Levi's arms, bewildered. It's the most lovely bit of clothing she's ever seen in her entire life. And much more intimidating than a military uniform, harness and all.

She looks from the dress to Levi, whose sharp gaze sends Eren's focus snapping back to the dress again. Eren swallows nervously.

"Oi," Levi says, and Eren flinches slightly. "You gonna take the dress from me anytime soon?"

"Y-yes, sir."

Eren reaches out with shaky hands and accepts the dress, clutching it in her arms. It's made of a material that she's never been close enough to touch before, something smooth and fine. She feels far too big, masculine, and unattractive for this dress. Will it even fit her? Won't she destroy it?

"Are you going to wear it, or drool on it?" Levi asks wryly.

"I'm sorry, Captain, I just-"

"I get that the dress is fancy, Eren, but you're gonna want to hurry up. Eat, and do your chores. You'll need to dress, fix that mess you call 'hair', and put some makeup on."

Eren gulps fearfully. She's never had her own brush, and she's never worn makeup in her life.

Misreading the look on Eren's face as one of annoyance (probably due to the poor cell lighting), Levi adds, "I know it's a fucking pain, but those inner-Sina assholes are sexist pigs who'll jump at the chance to call the Survey Corps uncivilized if we women fail to put on fancy dresses. Fucking pigs really just want to have something to ogle and grope while they get drunk. Fuckers." This is said with a vicious bite in the Captain's voice.

The more Levi talks trash about Sina men, the more Eren's getting a sense of Levi's past, and it's not a good one. She can only imagine what growing up as an attractive woman in the underworld must have been like, what Levi must have been forced to do to stay alive.

And additionally, the more Levi talks trash about Sina men, the more nervous Eren gets about this entire affair.

But this ball is important to the Survey Corps, and Eren has to steady her courage. "Captain, I-"

"What is it, brat? Can we wrap this up? I have to get ready, too."

"Sorry, sir," says Eren hurriedly, "I just… I've never put on makeup… and it's been a while since I brushed my hair… and I don't know which side of this dress is the front… I'm so sorry, Captain!" She says this last bit in a loud apologetic voice, and then braces herself for mocking words from her superior.

Instead, Levi sighs, shifting her weight and putting a hand on her hip so that the hip is cocked. "You've never dressed up in your life," she says.

"No, sir," replies Eren, hanging her head in shame, feeling ugly and coarse.

"Well, it was stupid of me to assume otherwise," says Levi, and Eren looks up in surprise. "I sure as hell didn't go to any fuckin' balls until I was at least ten years older than you, and the only reason I dressed up before that…" She trails off for a moment, and Eren sees her sigh again. "Anyway, of course you'll need help. Give me the dress." Eren dumbly hands the garment back. "I'm taking it back to my room. Come to get ready in an hour."

This is absolutely not what Eren expected at all. "Yes, Captain," she says energetically, "Thank you so much, Captain!"

Levi raises an eyebrow. "Calm down, kid. I'm helping you dress up, not giving you the secrets to the universe. Don't be late."

And forty minutes later, Eren is standing outside the Captain's door. She knocks, and is told to enter soon after.

Entering the room, she isn't at all surprised to see how clean it is. Nothing is out of place, except for a few brightly coloured bottles and tubes on the desk with the mirror attached to it and some fancy articles of clothing on the bed. Levi herself is standing near the mirrored desk, facing Eren as she enters the room. Eren blushes as she notices that Levi's wearing nothing but a fluffy white robe, and has probably recently bathed, considering that her hair is damp. When she walks toward Eren, a sweet smell wafts through the air. Eren has to resist the urge to follow the scent and bury her nose in her Corporal's hair.

"Perfect timing. I just got out of the shower." Levi closes the gap between the two of them, and reaches a delicate hand out to pinch a strand of Eren's hair. Immediately she drops it and makes a face. "How long has it been since you bathed? Wait, don't answer that. It's not your fault, you live in a goddamn dungeon, but you really need to bathe, now. You're grossing me out, so use my shower. And use the red bottles on your hair, not the purple."

Eren's mind whirls. Levi's shower. I'm using Captain Levi's own personal shower. Something about this seems incredibly intimate, and Eren feels a totally unprecedented warm sensation in her gut.

The shower is incredible. Hot water pours down, as Eren lathers the soap into her hair. It looks and feels expensive, and she marvels at the fact that Levi chose to share it with her.

Stepping out of the shower, Eren shivers. "Captain?" she hollers in the direction of the door, "Can I use-"

"Use the towel on the left of the rack," she hears Levi reply, her voice muffled by the door.

It's the softest towel Eren's ever used and she can't help but bury her face in it before she wraps it around herself and leaves the bathroom.

Levi is now dressed, and Eren can't help but gasp softly as she takes in what her captain is wearing. It's a dark blue dress, low cut with the straps looping around the neck, and flaring out slightly to the floor (honestly, it does look as though it needs to be hemmed shorter, but Eren isn't going to point that out). The dress hugs Levi's small breasts and blossoms out at her wide hips fantastically.

Her hair has dried now, a sleek black bob framing her lovely face, now with her usual bloodred lips and thick black lashes.  

Eren doesn't even know where to look.

"You look… so beautiful, Captain." The words tumble out before she can think about it, and she clutches the towel closer to herself with embarrassment.

Levi looks surprised for a second, and a faint pinkness appears on her cheeks. Then she rolls her eyes and snorts. "Yeah, yeah… makeup's a magical thing. Let's worry about you, now. The dress is on the bed."

Eren crosses to the bed (Levi’s bed), and picks up the dress, holding it against her body. In the proper light she can see it clearly, and she's even more intimidated by how fine it is. The dress is a rich purple, with a low neckline, three quarter sleeves, a narrow waist, and it looks as if it'll go down to the floor when she puts it on.

Wait… how does she even put it on?

"Umm…"

"Here." Levi's voice is a lot closer than Eren thought, and she jumps slightly. Seemingly not noticing, Levi grabs the dress at the waist and grips something sticking out at the top of the back. Gently she tugs at the thing sticking out, and Eren hears an odd faint scraping noise. She watches in horror as Levi pulls the thing down, ripping the dress in half down to the hips.

"You broke it!" she cries, confused and mourning the untimely death of the beautiful dress.

Levi turns to her, an eyebrow raised. "Calm down," she says, "I unzipped it."

"You… what?"

"Unzipped it," Levi repeats. "Look." She wiggles the thing sticking out, now at the hips of the dress. "It's called a zipper. See that path of teeth it has? It allows the dress to open and close." She pulls the zipper up, and Eren watches in fascination as the dress knits itself back together, until it's as perfect as it was before. "It's great for fancy dresses that are too tight to slip on." 

"Whoa," Eren says. She lifts a hand towards the zipper, looking at Levi as she asks, "Can I try?"

"It's your dress," replies Levi, gripping the dress so Eren doesn't have to.

Eren gingerly takes a hold of the zipper and pulls it down, exactly like she saw Levi pull it. And lo and behold, the dress unzips itself, like magic. She can't keep in a giggle as she zips the dress back up, then unzips it again, then zips, then unzips, then-

"Enough, brat," Levi reprimands, but her voice is missing its usual bite. "We have a ball to go to."

"Oh! Sorry, sir." Eren releases her hold on the zipper, and as she does, her towel slips, an uncomfortable reminder that she's only wearing a towel in front of Captain Levi. Eren grips the towel and lets out a strangled noise, turning to hide. But Levi has casually turned her head away, preventing herself from seeing anything, and Eren feels a rush of affection towards her.

Wordlessly she takes the dress. Levi steps back, turning her whole body away from Eren. "I have to put on my jewellery," she says pointedly, walking towards the dresser without looking back.

Eren is surprised she's not more self-conscious, but she trusts Levi immensely. Almost without shame, she lets the towel fall to the floor. Suddenly she remembers something crucial, and feels like hitting her head against a wall. "Umm, Captain…"

"On the bed."

Eren looks on the bed, sees the underwear, and feels heat on her cheeks. It's not like they're racy or anything, just simple black bikini-style panties and a matching bra. But they're still on Levi's bed. Eren's underwear is lying on Levi's bed. This situation is very surreal.

Quickly Eren wriggles on the panties and bra, and begins to tackle the dress. It slips on smoothly, and it feels amazing on her bare legs. For a minute she struggles in vain to zip up the dress herself, before she realizes it's a hopeless cause.

Levi apparently hears Eren struggle, because she asks without looking, "Do you need me to zip you up?"

"Yes, thank you, Captain," says Eren gratefully.

Levi turns now, and Eren gets a look at her jewellery as she walks towards her. Around Levi's neck is a silver spiky necklace, and her ears are adorned with large silver circles each strung with one navy bead. "Turn," she says firmly, and Eren does.

Levi puts one hand on the small of her back, and Eren can't suppress a shudder. "You might want to suck in your stomach for a second; it makes this a bit easier," says Levi. Eren obeys, and the dress tightens around her as the zipper travels up her body. "Does it fit comfortably?" asks Levi.

"Yes," Eren replies honestly. It's snug, but it's not nearly as tight as her military uniform.

She turns to look at herself in the full-length mirror, but Levi puts a firm hand on her shoulder. "It's gonna be better with the full effect. Let me do your makeup and hair first."

Levi leads Eren over to the mirrored desk and sits her down. Eren  can only see herself from the chest up, but she still is pleasantly surprised by the way her breasts look. Her face and hair, however, are not so pleasant. "I'm sorry I'm making you do all this work, sir," she says.

Levi huffs. "I'm under orders to prevent your rural standards of beauty from making us the laughingstock of Sina." But Eren has a feeling that Levi just might be going above and beyond the line of duty, and that makes her feel… special.

In the mirror she sees Levi lean to the right to grab a brush, and then begin to tackle her hair. "Shit, your hair is thick. I'm jealous."

This doesn't make sense to Eren at all. How could Levi be jealous of anything related to her? "Jealous? But, sir, your hair is so-"

"Thin and greasy."

"No!" Eren is shocked to hear that Levi dislikes anything about herself. "Your hair is so sleek! And shiny, and neat, and…" She trails off as she realises she’s being a fucking idiot.

She sees Levi's smirk in the mirror. "Right, I forgot you were the beauty expert here. But thank you, Eren."

Levi begins to brush Eren's hair in short, firm strokes. It pulls, but Eren forces herself not to wince. There's silence for a while, until Eren feels so uncomfortable she searches for something to break it. "This is a cool desk, with the mirror and stuff," is the only thing she can think of.

"It's called a vanity," Levi answers, busy with her hair.

"Oh." Eren can't think of anything else to say, so they lapse back into silence. But it's not too bad. Now Levi has managed to untangle most of the knots, so her brushing is much smoother, and it feels good. Eren closes her eyes and tilts her head back, Levi's cool and delicate hands like a massage on her scalp.

After a while, Levi says, "Done with your hair," and Eren opens her eyes and ogles her reflection. Levi has pulled the hair that normally frames her face to the back, similar to the messy bun Eren normally wears for training. However, Levi's connected it in the back into one slim braid, still leaving a lot of hair hanging loose while getting it out of the way. Eren's hair is smoother and neater than she ever believed it could be.

"It's beautiful!" she gasps, reaching a hand up to run her hand through it. It's so soft.

"Don't touch it too much," Levi warns.

Next, Levi tells her to turn the chair so that her back is to the mirror, and Eren obeys. "I'm gonna do your makeup now, and it's gonna feel weird. Stay as still as you possibly can, alright?"

Eren nods her assent, and Levi gets to work. First she grabs a small jar of skin-coloured cream and a cotton ball. Opening the jar, she swipes the cotton ball through the cream, holds it up to Eren's face, and nods.

"What is that?" Eren asks.

"Foundation. To even out your skin tone." The cream feels cold and slick on Eren's face, and she resists the urge to shudder.

Next Levi takes out a smaller jar containing a shiny dark-brown powder. Before Eren can ask, Levi says, "Eyeshadow."

"What?"

"It goes on your eyelids. Makes your eyes look bigger. Not that you need-" Levi stops, and clears her throat. "Anyway. You need to keep your eyes closed for this bit." Eren immediately squeezes her eyes shut, and Levi chuckles. "Not that tightly." Eren relaxes slightly, and feels her eyelids get coated with the stuff.

Eyeliner is the hardest. Levi lets out a few swears every time Eren flinches, causing the dark brown liquid to streak across Eren's cheeks. Mascara is difficult too, and both women are extremely relieved when Levi finishes with Eren's eyes.

Finally, Levi pulls out a small golden tube, uncapping and untwisting it. A smooth mass of dark red rises up.

"What's that?"

"Lipstick. Move your lips like this," Levi says, sticking her lips out as she purses them in a very un-Levi-like expression. Eren can't help but giggle before she mimics the gesture. "Good," Levi says, gliding the lipstick over Eren's lips, "Now do this." She smacks her lips together.

The lipstick is creamy on Eren's lips as she smacks them, and her eyes feel a bit sticky and heavy. "It feels weird," she murmurs.

"You get used to it after a while," replies Levi.

"Am I done?"

"Patience, brat," Levi says with a huff. "I just need to put on your jewellery." She picks up a box lying on the bed and pulls out a simple gold necklace, fastening it around Eren's neck, following with a matching gold bracelet. "I assume you don't have your ears pierced, right?"

"No," Eren mutters gloomily.

"Tch, and I sincerely doubt piercing them now would be worth it, considering they'd just heal over," Levi says. "Luckily, I have clip-on ones." She pulls them out of the box as well. Before Eren can blink, she feels a sharp pinch on her right earlobe.

"Ow!" she cries, looking at Levi accusingly.

Levi raises an incredulous eyebrow at her. "You've lost more limbs than I've lost teeth."

"Yeah, but-"

"Is one widdle pinch too much for the baby?" Levi coos in a truly terrifying baby voice.

Eren flushes with embarrassed indignation, squeaking, "No! I just… could use some warning, next time!"

"Alright. Eren, bite the pillow, I'm going to put your other earring on," Levi says dryly, the corners of her thin-lipped mouth quirked up slightly.

"Well… thank you for the warning," says Eren, her face feeling even hotter. After the other earring is in place, she taps her knees eagerly. "Am I done now?"

"Sure," Levi says, "Don't step on any rocks, though, 'cause it'd be a bitch to get blood out of the dress."

Eren rolls her eyes. "Ha, ha. I'm guessing you have shoes for me?"

"Keep up the smart mouth and I'll make you go barefoot," says Levi amicably as she walks over to the closet, bending down to pick up what presumably are Eren's shoes.

Eren would really really love to say that she doesn't stare at Levi's ass. But goddamn does Levi have the most fantastic ass. Their regulation whites are the prime attire for ass appreciation, true, but there's something so delicately erotic about the dark curve of Levi's ass in the tight smooth dress.

As Levi stands and turns to face her, Eren attempts to not look like a total pervert. But Levi cocks a hip to the side and eyes her down, saying, "Don't drool. It'll mess up your makeup."

Eren stutters for a second, only managing to come up with, "Which shoes are mine?"

"Which do you think?" asks Levi, holding up the two pairs of shoes in her hands. Eren grins and points to the larger pair, simple flats in the same shade as her dress. Levi nods and hands  them over, backing up to sit on the bed with her own pair.

Eren pulls on the flats relatively easily, and gets to watch Levi strap on her shoes, black sky-high heels that hurt Eren's feet just by looking at them (explaining why the dress was made to be taller than the barefoot Captain).

"Why couldn't I have high heels?" Eren asks.

Levi looks at her, one eyebrow raised. "You think you could walk in these?" she says, lifting a leg.

"No," Eren says, trying not to stare at Levi's leg, "But I probably could walk in a little bit of a heel… I've never worn high heels before!"

"Trust me, even low heels can hurt if you're not used to them," Levi grunts, but she's not looking at Eren, which is suspicious.

As both women stand up, Eren realizes the truth. "Did you… did you want to be closer to my height?" she asks carefully. Although Levi's heels add height, she's still about 15 centimeters shorter than Eren is.

Levi huffs out a breath and, to Eren's great delight, blushes again. "I'm a grown fucking woman, not a petty brat like you. Now do you want to see what you look like or not?"

"Oh, definitely!" Eren cries. She runs to the full length mirror, stops in front of it, and lets out a gasp.

The Eren in the mirror is a beautiful stranger. Eren's kind of in love with her. Her bright blue-green eyes pop, her lips are plump and pouty, her hair is sleek, her dress hugs her in all the right places, and Jean can go suck a dick.

"From your awed silence I take it that you're happy?" Levi asks amusedly, coming up to stand next to her.

"I'm beautiful," Eren says, spellbound. "I've never been… before."

At this, Levi frowns. "Shut the fuck up. You're wearing nice shit now, but you always look fine."

"'Fine'?" Eren says, turning to Levi in confusion. Was that just some sort of compliment?

Levi looks away, saying, "Fine, nice, you look good, whatever. Am I gonna get any gratitude for this?"

Eren turns to her, eyes sparkling. "Oh, thank you, Captain!" she cries, "Thank you so much!"

"You're welcome," Levi says gruffly, still avoiding eye contact. "Yeah… so anyway. We're leaving soon. Just gotta…" The Captain walks over to the bed and picks up a pair of long gloves that match her dress. Eren watches her slide them on to her pale, firm arms and swallows thickly. "Erwin should be here any minute," adds Levi.

A sudden wave of dread washes over Eren. She’s picturing so many ways that this day could go wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> gosh, i love that dress-up/make-up scene so much.....
> 
> the next chapter will be a short interlude from Levi's POV, so stay tuned!!!!
> 
> also, if you have any questions about any of the worldbuilding i did, or how I portrayed Eren and Levi as women, please hit me up :3 For example, someone in the comments already asked why i have Eren calling Levi sir, and i'm so glad they did! ('sir' is gender-neutral for the military).
> 
> thank you for reading!


	3. Levi's Interlude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yep, that's her embarrassing secret. Levi has a big dumb crush on Eren Jaeger.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *rolls out of the trash to FINALLY update this fic*
> 
> I AM SO SORRY. LIFE.... IS BUSY.... and actually i really should not be updating so close to finals ahahahahah iM AN IDIOT
> 
> this is just a little interlude into Levi's life, but don't worry! i have another chapter coming VERY SOON (it's already been written!!!)

Levi pulls on her gloves, mentally chastising herself for her inability to reign in the feelings that threaten to pour out of her. She keeps forcing them back down, like she does with all other unwelcome emotions, but something about Eren makes them impossibly undeniable.

Yep, that's her embarrassing secret. Levi has a big dumb crush on Eren Jaeger.

Infuriatingly enough, Levi herself wasn't the first to realise this. It had been Hanji who first teased her about it, saying that she'd been excusing Eren from partaking in their experiments for weak reasons (For the record, Eren had been experiencing a bad cough, and Levi thought it was only fair that the kid should be given a couple cups of tea and take a rest before having to turn into a goddamn titan). Levi had scoffed at Hanji then, saying that their head was too full of titan shit to know anything whatsoever about romance.

Then Levi went to bring Eren her third cup of tea, and Eren, despite her throat being painfully dry, gave Levi the biggest, sweetest, most genuine smile that she had ever seen. Something tightened in Levi's chest, and she knew right there and then that this was going to be embarrassing as all fuck.

Every attempt Levi has made to get over it has failed. Eren trains hard, listens to Levi's every order, makes Levi's tea exactly the way Levi likes it, and continues to flash that insufferable smile. And Levi gets the damnedest urge to smile whenever Eren smiles, as if the brat draws out all the emotions she's kept so well controlled for so long.

Eren burns with a passion that has on occasion literally taken Levi's breathe away. She's woken up sweaty from dreams of Eren looming over her with bright eyes flashing wickedly under heavy lids, as if Levi were the teenager. It's going to be the death of her, but Levi genuinely aches to be in Eren's arms.

Giving the brat those private lessons wasn't her idea, it was Erwin's. Erwin, who was very well aware of Levi's feelings for Eren (Levi could never manage to keep anything hidden from that bastard), and yet still insisted that she was the one who had to  do it. Fuck Erwin.

Every night was agonizing. She would force herself not to touch Eren more than it was absolutely necessary, to avoid all opportunities for small talk, to keep Eren from getting too close.

But she kept fucking up.  

Like that idiotic moment where she couldn't help but grab Eren's hand and kiss it. Sure, it was a demonstration, but she knew what she was doing. And Eren's reaction felt like a slap in the face, made her feel like the creepy old woman she was.

Or when she realised that she and Eren shared the same views on womanhood, and Levi ached for the two of them to be able to treat each other as equals.

Or the time when she was drunk on Eren's attention and spilled too much about herself. Naturally, talking about her past had her seizing up in panic, and she still cringes in embarrassment thinking about how she had looked like such a freak in front of Eren.

Dancing with Eren had almost been her undoing. Eren's stubborn insistence on leading, her strong arms wrapping around Levi's slender frame, had been disastrously seductive.

And then, she made her biggest slip up. She couldn't stand how damn fearful Eren acted around her, as if she was just waiting to be struck. It made Levi feel sick. She still sometimes had nightmares about that day in the courtroom, nightmares that ended with Eren dead on the floor. So she had said something dangerously close to a request for friendship, and of course Eren had responded that it was only natural to treat her as a superior officer.

At least one of them knew that their relationship needed to be kept strictly professional.

Since then, Levi had resolved herself to keep her distance, and wasn't actually doing a bad job of it. But helping Eren get dressed for the ball has brought back memories, bad memories, memories of when she was a young and naive girl who wore heavy makeup and obscenely short dresses to be at the mercy of men in the gutters of Sina.

It gets worse when she finishes putting on her gloves and turns around.

Eren looks as if she's dying to say something.

"Spit it out, Eren," Levi says.

"Um... it's stupid, but I'm just... I'm a bit scared, Captain," admits Eren softly.

Levi feels a lump in her throat and an ache in her chest. She doesn't blame Eren one bit for being scared. She blames herself and Erwin for sending a young woman into this goddamn ball that she herself still fucking dreads.

It's not even because of the fact that Eren's never been in high society before and will be judged by every single snooty noble with a stick up their ass, or that many will be treating Eren like a monster, a savage in a fancy dress.

Those things are problematic, for sure, but Levi's concerns run even deeper. Eren is young, beautiful, unique... and naive, in her own way. Through her entire life, Levi has met an immeasurable amount of men who would relish the opportunity to ruin someone like Eren. And she knows for a fact that they won't give a single shit about the fact that Eren's a soldier, that she's humanity's last hope. They won't care that Eren's wearing makeup for the first time and that an hour ago she didn't even know what a zipper was.

Eren's always beautiful. But in the dress and makeup she's otherworldly, and it makes Levi's stomach hot with flames to think about any grubby asshole's hands touching someone like Eren. 

Aloud she says, "I'll be there. Erwin will be there, and other Corps members will be there. So will some of our friends from the inner walls, I'll point them out to you."

Eren nods, but her eyes are still too round, and her arms wrap around herself. Levi longs to touch her, if just to give her a comforting hug. "Just... just remember what I taught you, and you'll be ok. I'll make sure of it," she says, allowing a little emotion to creep into her voice.

It's a promise she intends to keep, no matter what.

 


	4. Do You Feel Alright?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The night of the ball.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HA! Told you I'd update soon! 
> 
> So here we go, the big event itself. Keep an eye out for all the characters I managed to shove in!

Levi's words are comforting, but Eren's not relaxing. She may not be worrying about the ball at this moment, but it's only because she's too busy noticing Levi.

Eren is noticing the way Levi is looking at Eren, the slight waver in Levi's normally flat voice, the way Levi's arms raise slightly before falling back at her sides.

It draws Eren to her like a magnet, and she's this close to opening up and admitting her feelings, reaching out to close the gap between them and finally, finally, getting to touch Levi freely... 

Suddenly, Eren hears a knock at the door. Specifically, three short knocks, and one final knock after a few seconds. Levi sighs loudly. "Give me a fuckin' second, Erwin, we're coming," she says loudly, and Eren can only guess that they have some sort of secret knock.

She follows Levi to the door, and Levi holds it open for Eren to step out first. When Eren does so, she can't hold in a little intake of breath.

Eren may be falling over herself because of Levi, but she can't help but appreciate the beauty of Commander Erwin Smith in a fancy suit.

"Good evening," he says. His posture is unusually relaxed, a hand in one pocket and a smile on his face.

Eren stands up stick-straight and salutes. "Good evening, Commander!"

"You look lovely, Eren," says Erwin with a smile.

"Th-thank you, sir!" Eren says quickly. "It's all because of Captain Levi helping me, though." 

"I'm sure you have some part in it," Erwin says, "But I know Levi's a master when it comes to cleaning up, in any way, shape, or form."

"Quit it with the bad jokes, Dadwin," Levi says. "You're hanging out with the young folks tonight."

Erwin chuckles. "Are you counting yourself in with the 'young folks', Levi? Considering that you're less than ten years younger than I am." 

Levi shrugs, looking unfazed. "One of us looks our age, and it isn't me. Now are we getting this fucking show on the road, or did I spend hours on our hair and makeup for no reason?" 

"Very well," Erwin says pleasantly. "The carriage is ready, if you'll both follow me?"

"Carriage?" Eren says as they start walking. 

"You didn't think we were gonna go horseback in these clothes?" Levi says incredulously.

"Well, no, but... since when does the Survey Corps have a carriage?" 

"We commissioned one especially for this event," Erwin explains.

 

* * *

 

 

The carriage is very nice, with padded seats and insulation enough to keep the chilled late-autumnal air from getting in.

Besides from the chill, it's a beautiful day, with barely a cloud in the sky. There's lots to see out the window, houses and families and fields and rushing streams.

Even so, Eren squirms uncomfortably in her fine clothes, occasionally shooting nervous glances at her companions.

Commander Erwin sits across from her with perfect posture, reading some documents he brought along for the ride. Whenever he catches Eren's glance, he smiles at her, which makes her blush.

Captain Levi, on the other hand, is right next to Eren. She's slumped in her seat, leaning against the carriage window, leaning her head on one hand. She looks very bored and somewhat miserable, but she doesn't speak, and she barely moves.

Eren fidgets a lot. Whenever she fingers her necklace, plays with her hair, or touches her face, Levi reaches out a hand without looking and smacks Eren lightly, reminding her not to muss her appearance.

So Eren sits on her hands and turns to look out the window again. This is going to be a long ride.

 

* * *

 

 

Finally, after hours of mundanity, they reach the castle. 

Eren hears the carriage driver bring the horses to a stop. Soon after, the door opens (presumably by the driver), and it's time for them to get out. 

"Showtime," Levi mutters as she follows Erwin out of the carriage.

Eren takes a deep breath, adjusts her bra, scratches an itch on her ass. "Fuck," she says, relishing one last moment of vulgarity. Then she exits the carriage too. 

The first thing she registers as she steps onto the ground is that it's paved, and very nicely paved too. She's been dragging her military-issued boots through grass and dirt and mud for the past few years, and the feeling of her dainty shoes on the fine pavement is completely foreign to her.

The second thing she registers is the lights. As her eyes get used to them, she sees she's on some kind of broad road that loops around in a circle, upon which many carriages are stopping and letting off passengers. There are lampposts bordering both sides of the road, and an army of lights peppered on and around the magnificent castle, stately looming over the carriages.

The castle itself is tremendous. Its walls are pure white, and here and there decorated with ornately carved statues.

The amount of fancily dressed people pouring in through the castle's large entranceway makes Eren dizzy.

"Eren," Levi says, putting a hand on her shoulder. This sharply pulls Eren out of her reverie, and she flinches.

Immediately Levi pulls her hand off of Eren, pausing before she asks, "You alright?"

"Oh! Yes," Eren says. "It's just... a lot to take in. But I'll get used to it."

"Well you'll have to get used to it rather quickly, I'm afraid," Erwin says.

As he says this, Eren notices three soldiers walking towards them. Two of them are about her age, maybe a little older. One of them is more around the age of Erwin. All three of them are members of the military police.

"Commander Erwin?" the oldest woman says, not unpleasantly.

Erwin nods at her. "Captain Angelina. Good evening."

He holds out a hand. The woman smiles, and the two of them shake hands. "It's been a while," she says. "How're things out there in the hellscape?"

Erwin chuckles. "Fine, thank you. How are things with you?"

"With this ball going on? How d'you think?" the woman says wearily. "So much security needed, so many paranoid nobles wanting personal guards. And then, on top of all that, there's you and your little friend." It takes Eren a second to realise this woman is talking about her. 

"Eren," says Erwin, "This is Captain Angelina of the Military Police."

 

* * *

 

"Eren," Erwin says as the carriage gets closer and closer to Wall Sina, "Levi has prepped you very well on etiquette and behavior, but I need to give you a brief rundown on the people that you'll be meeting at the ball."

"I'm listening, sir," Eren says, grateful for something to talk about.

"The first thing you need to know," says Erwin, "Is that the Military Police have insisted on issuing you an armed guard for the duration of your attendance at the ball."

Eren frowns, puzzled. "But Captain Levi will be there," she says. "Isn't that enough?" 

"Damn straight," Levi says, punching Eren's arm in approval. Eren can't help but smile at that.

"Unfortunately," Erwin says, "It would appear that they have trouble trusting us. But you'll only have three guards assigned to you, and they'll stay out of sight." 

Levi snorts. "Sure," she says, "Let's have faith in the Military Police doing their jobs well."

"I've received word that one of them will be Angelina," Erwin says. "So it might not be so bad."

"Oh, god, not the princess herself," Levi says.

"What? Who is she?" asks Eren, feeling woefully out of the loop.

"Captain Angelina," Erwin explains, "The Captain of the Military Police. She can be a bit... privileged, but for the most part, she's a lovely person."

 

* * *

 

Looking at Captain Angelina now, Eren can see what Erwin meant.

Even though she's in full military uniform, Angelina is wearing makeup, and her dark brown hair is long and beautiful. Clearly she isn't ready for any kind of battle, which puts Eren's teeth on edge, reminds her of the soldiers from the days preceding the first attack on Wall Maria.

But then Angelina smiles and steps forward, offering a hand. "I know we're supposed to curtsey and stuff," she says, "But I always think that kind of thing is so pointless for soldiers, right? It's nice to meet you, Eren. Properly, I mean. I was at the military trial, but of course you had other things to worry about."

Startled, Eren takes her hand and they shake. "You mean like how you guys were going to execute me?" she asks. Levi nudges her back, and Eren realises she's supposed to be polite. 

Angelina doesn't even blink. "Sorry about that," she says flatly. "Can't be too careful in these times. But I'm so glad we were wrong about you."

"So are we," Erwin says smoothly.

"Good evening, Captain Levi," Angelina says, with a somewhat hostile air.

"Evening," Levi replies, just as hostile, and the two lady captains regard each other tensely for a second. Eren notes that Angelina is about a foot taller than Levi.

"Angelina," Erwin says loudly, "Would you mind introducing your cadets to us?"

"Of course," Angelina says, reluctantly breaking eye contact with Levi, who smirks triumphantly. "This is Cadet Hitch and Cadet Marlowe. Recent entries, but extremely talented soldiers." 

The two cadets step forward and salute, both of them openly staring at Eren. Eren salutes back, the movement awkward in her dress.

"And now, if you'll allow me to speak with you both in private for a moment," Angelina says, "I can run over the procedures of this evening. Hitch and Marlowe can properly introduce themselves to Eren, while they wait." 

"Of course," Erwin says, "Lead the way."

The three officers walk a bit aways from the three cadets, leaving Eren at the mercy of her peers. 

The girl, Hitch, circles her curiously, while the boy, Marlowe, eyes her suspiciously. Eren stands her ground, glaring at them both.

Finally, Hitch stops in front of Eren, leaning forward to invade her personal space. "You're not what I was expecting, titan-girl," she says.

"Um... sorry about that?" Eren says.

"No, don't apologise," replies Hitch. "I expected some savage unkempt animal of a person, the way some of the people around here talk about you. But you're... not like that at all." 

"Hitch, don't," Marlowe warns. 

But Hitch dismissively waves a hand at him, still gazing at Eren, now smiling a catlike smile. "If you've got a break during this ball thingy," she says, "Wanna come with me? I know a lot of places we can go in the castle where we won't be disturbed." 

Eren likes this girl, feels a sort of kinship to her. If they were both trainees together, and if Levi wasn’t… well, Eren has no doubt that they would have fucked multiple times, in the right circumstances. "Wish I could," she says, mirroring Hitch's grin, "But I doubt Captain Levi's gonna let me."

"And for good reason!" Marlowe says, scowling at the both of them. "I was assuming that 'Humanity's Hope' would have more respect for the gravitas of this situation. Clearly, I was mistaken."

_What a jerk._ "Ok look, bro," Eren says, "Calm down. This isn't a military procedure. This is a stupid little party thrown by the king. It's kind of a waste of time when we should all be worrying about more important things, so don't tell me to respect the gravy-ass or whatever the hell you just said." 

Marlowe’s nostrils flare. "Every order we're given should be respected."

"Talking like that, why are you even in the Military Police?" Eren asks him, her voice getting louder. "Talk about a lack of respect, you're surrounded by soldiers who don't give two shits about what's right and what's wrong." 

"Yeah, and I'm here to change that," he says firmly, his voice increasing in volume to match hers. "I'm going to rework the system from the inside."

Eren pauses. Thinks about it for a second. It's something she never considered. "That... huh. That's pretty neat," she admits quietly. "I always just thought of beating them down, straightforwardly."

Marlowe relaxes. "Sometimes it feels like that would have been the better choice," he admits with a small sheepish smile 

"Sometimes I wish I'd done what you did," admits Eren. 

Hitch has been lazily watching their argument. "Hey, Marlowe," she says quietly, "You think this is the 'suicidal bastard' Annie mentioned once?"

"Who mentioned what?" Eren says, unsure if she heard Hitch correctly.

But before Hitch can elaborate, the officers return.

"Time to go in!" says Angelina. "Listen, Eren, don't worry about us, we'll be watching from afar, just a technicality."

They start walking towards the entrance. Levi sidles up beside Eren and quietly says, "Remember everything?"

 "I think so," says Eren, her stomach tightening with nerves. 

"From now on, you're gonna greet everyone the way I taught you," Levi says. "Remember that, remember your table manners, remember to smile. Got it?"

"Yes," says Eren. 

Levi's hand twitches, as if Levi were about to put a hand on her shoulder, but it stops and Eren figures she's reading too much into it. "It'll be fine," Levi says roughly.

They enter the castle, pass through a large hallway decorated with tapestries and flowers, and then finally they file out into what Levi mutters is the ballroom.

Eren's jaw drops.

The space is massive, far bigger than she was expecting. As large as the fields where Eren received her training, and the roof is higher than any she's ever been under. From the ceiling hang beautiful light fixtures that remind Eren of fountains, and the walls are covered in more art and taper off into pillars as they approach the floor. 

The floor is covered in people. The people are all in incredibly fancy clothes, talking and laughing. Music plays, although Eren cannot see what the source of it is.

 "Wow," she say simply. 

"Don't get starry-eyed," warns Levi, "Now's the time to brace yourself."

Just as she says that, a woman nearest to them in the crowd turns and spots Eren. Her painted-on eyebrows disappear into her glossy bangs, and she whirls around to whisper to her companions, her skirts following her. This happens with other people nearest to Eren, and more and more people start taking notice. 

The talking and laughing fades to whispering, which fades to outright silence. Even the music stops, after a moment or two.

The entire ballroom is staring at Eren now. She desperately wishes that she could wake up in her uncomfortable prison bed and realise that this is all a dream. She's also feeling quite dizzy and nauseated.

Thank the gods for Erwin, who steps forward and bids everyone a good evening, as smooth and natural as he always is. Everyone looks gratified by his presence (who could blame them?), and they nod and smile. His words are relayed back through the crowd to the people who are too far away to hear.

"As you may have noticed," Erwin says, "We have brought Eren Jaeger with us tonight. Unless," he adds with a smile, "you all were just astounded by how good I look in this suit?"

This bad joke gets a laugh from the crowd, and Eren can hear Levi groaning beside her.

"In all seriousness," Erwin continues after the laughter dies down, "Yes, Eren Jaeger is here. But there's no need to worry, because she's not at all dangerous, not to anyone who isn't a titan. She's here to enjoy the ball, same as you all are, so please don't let it spoil your evening."

And after that, everyone peels their eyes away and back to their personal conversations. The music starts again, and Eren lets out a relieved breath. 

Erwin turns to Eren and Levi. "Alright, got that out of the way," he says quietly, "Now we must go greet the king."

"Catch you later, titan-girl," Hitch mutters amicably as the three members of the Military Police disappear into the crowd.

They make their way through the crowd. Eren notices that although she's attracting much less attention than before, people still stop to stare at her, and move so that they have no chance of touching her.

Finally, they break through the crowd on the other side, where  a few small sets of stairs lead to the king, the sole ruler of humanity, sitting on an ornate marble throne.

 

* * *

 

"So, Eren, you're aware of the monarchy, yes?" Erwin asks in the carriage.

Eren nods. "I mean, mainly I know there's a king," she says.

"Yeah, there's a king," Levi says, "And he's an asshat."

"Levi, be careful how you speak," Erwin warns, but he doesn't seem that perturbed. Eren guesses that he's not a huge fan of the king either.

"Whatever," Levi says dismissively, as if she couldn't be bothered to worry about such trifling things like getting executed for slander. "He's useless, doesn't do anything, and doesn't care about the people at all. He deserves to be called an asshat."

Erwin sighs. "Anyway," he says, "You'll meet the king, but only briefly. Don't worry, I'll do all the talking. As long as you curtsey politely, it will be fine."

 

* * *

 

A man standing close to the throne, dressed in the same red-and-gold garbs that Eren's been noticing all the palace guards wearing, stands up and clears his throat. "Your majesty," he says, "Presenting Commander Erwin Smith, of the Survey Corps. Captain Levi, of the Survey Corps. And Cadet Eren Jaeger, of the Survey Corps."

The king looks at them and smiles. He's an old man, one of the oldest men Eren has ever seen, and fat. His throne is flanked on both sides by spear carriers.

"Greetings, Survey Corps," he says. "Erwin, how are you?"

"Very well, thank you," Erwin says. "And how does your grace fare?"

"Well, currently, I'm positively starving," replies the king. "Dinner is the only part of these parties that makes them all worthwhile."

It's like the sickest joke in the world, hearing the king say he's starving, even if it's in jest. Eren knows starving, knows it all too well. She has experienced days where stale bread was her one meal of the day, where she looked to the gutters for water. She has seen children reduced to no more but skeletons, dying on the streets.

This fat, silly old man has never experienced anything close to starving.

But she knows better than to tell him that. So she bites her tongue and feels the rage boil her up inside, refusing to let it out. At least she won't have to speak with him-

"And so this is Eren Jaeger," the king says, leaning forward a bit to peer at her like some kind of exhibit. "Hello, Eren. How are you enjoying your first ball?"

Levi reaches out to nudge her, but Eren doesn't need any reminding. She takes a deep breath before sinking into the lowest curtsy she can muster, smiling her biggest fake smile up at the king. "Very well, thank you," she says, before hurriedly adding, "Your grace."

"Well, I hope you continue to enjoy it," the king says. "Have a good night, all of you."

This is apparently the cue for Eren, Levi, and Erwin to back off. As they walk away, Erwin says, "Very well done, Eren. Nice job."

Levi says nothing, just lets out a _tch_ and mutters something that sounds suspiciously like 'asshat' under her breath.

Eren's still patting herself on the back for not ripping the guy's face open, when Levi tugs the sleeve of Erwin's suit and mutters, "Erwin, it's him."

Erwin looks up, then stiffens. Eren's never seen her Commander allow himself to look this upset before. "I see him," Erwin says in an icy tone.

As he says this, a small group people are approaching, two men and two women.

All four of them are in the percentage of people at the ball who reek of perfume and money, and who are dressed so aggressively nice that they almost look silly, especially the women who boast ropes of pearls and yards of silk.

"Erwin," the man in the middle greets. He's an old man, almost as old as the king, but he's tall with a frame that was probably quite imposing in his prime. He's smiling, but it's a smile that communicates that he thinks he's superior to anyone he comes across. He looks like a miserable man who Eren would never bother spending much time with, and yet there's something strongly familiar about him.

"Ah, good evening, Edward," Erwin says. He's smiling too, but the smile doesn't reach his eyes. The two men bow to each other, but neither of them bow very much.

"I'm sure you remember my wife, Lady Beatrice," Edward says, and the older of the two woman steps forward and curtsies ever so slightly before quickly stepping back. She has a face like a pursed lemon.

"And of course you recall my son, Edward the second." The younger man, maybe five years Erwin's senior, steps forward and bows, once again very slightly. He looks as if he has a seriously large stick up his ass, but he too is agonizingly familiar, and Eren still can't figure out why.

"But I don't believe you've met Edward's wife, Sofia." The youngest woman, probably only five years older than Eren herself, steps forward and curtsies. Her curtsy is deeper than Beatrice's, and instead of looking blankly overhead like the rest of her group, she peers at Eren curiously before stepping back to rejoin her husband. As she does, Edward-the-second places a protective arm around her and glares at Eren, as if Eren is currently poised to rip his wife's throat out.

"Of course, Lady Beatrice and Edward, so nice to see you again," Erwin says. Then his tone becomes a little dryer as he adds, "And it's a pleasure to meet you, Sofia. Welcome to the family."

This last sentence seems to infuriate the elder Edward, for some reason. "Erwin," he says through clenched teeth, "Are you not going to introduce us to your companions?"

"My apologies," replies Erwin, sounding not at all apologetic. "You remember Captain Levi, I assume?"

Levi steps forward into a graceful curtsy. Eren knows well that Levi despises everything around her, and yet her face is carefully blank, her movements deliberate and soft. She's absolutely incredible.

"And this, as you may already have guessed, is Eren Jaeger."

Eren rips her gaze from Levi and advances forward two steps. She notices, with a mixture of amusement and anger, that the group opposite her carefully leans back as she gets closer to them. Then she curtsies and stumbles back to the safety of the space between Levi and Erwin.

"Ah," the elder Edward says, "I did hear that you had taken in another stray. First a whore from the underground, now a monster from the outer walls. It's quite unbelievable that you got the position of commander, isn't it, Erwin?"

The words are said so softly and politely that Eren barely registers how cruel they are. And luckily, by the time she realises what was just said, Levi has gently laid a hand on the small of her back, which grounds her and keeps her from tearing the man's throat out.

How dare he insult Erwin, whose leadership prowess has kept the majority of her teammates alive through the past years? And even more importantly, how dare he speak of Levi like that? How many titans has _he_ killed, how many lives has _he_ saved, that he can be so high and mighty?

"Yes, it's an interesting time for all of us," Erwin replies, and although his tone is even, Eren sees his eyes are angry. "Some of us have obtained new soldiers that have given us an unprecedented edge against the titans, and some of us are currently in trouble with the law for hoarding warehouses of goods away from the masses. Very interesting, indeed."

There's another short pause, one Eren is very tempted to fill by high-fiving her commander. Old Edward's face turns a nasty shade of purple. "Yes," he finally says, "Well. The whole situation is a matter of the risks involved with earning enough money to support a family, something I'm sure you wouldn't understand. Enjoy the ball, and for god's sake, don't let either of your wild dogs loose."

And with that, he gestures to his family and the four of them scuttle off, probably to go ruin someone else's night.

Erwin sighs. "He gets worse every year," he says quietly. "I'm sorry about that, Eren."

"You handled it better than ever, though," Levi tells him.

"Yeah, that was a great comeback, sir!" Eren says.

Erwin's mouth twitches into a smile for a second. "Thank you both," he says.

"Who was that guy?" asks Eren, frowning in the direction of the group.

"That guy," Erwin says, "Is one of the most prominent nobles in Sina. Lord Edward Smith."

It takes a second to kick in, and then Eren's eyes bug with surprise. 

"Are you telling me that... that guy is your father?"

"Not _is_ ," Erwin says, " _Was._  He was my father, yes. If you both will excuse me, I need to speak to a few people. I'll meet you both at dinner." 

He walks away, and Levi sighs. "He has no right to feel bad about removing himself from a life with that shithead," she says.

"What does he mean by 'was'?" Eren asks.

"Edward disowned him," Levi mutters, "When Erwin testified against him in court for bribery." 

"That's terrible," Eren says. 

"Yeah, Erwin may be a shithead, but at least he's nothing like his dad." 

"No, I mean... that's actually terrible," Eren insists. "My mother died. My father's missing. So many people I know have lost their families..."

She feels like she's getting a bit overemotional, but Levi's still listening, so Eren soldiers on.

"People are killed and everything, and that guy just... cut off his son without a second thought? He should be thankful that the both of them are still alive."

Levi sighs. "People in here... they're not like us, Eren. They don't have the same morals. They live in a different world, where their biggest problem is being bored."

 "This isn't right," Eren says intensely. "We're laying down our lives out there."

"Save that talk for later," Levi says, looking around at the room unhappily. "You're right, and we can discuss it, but this isn't the time or place. I know it's fucking infuriating, but just hold it in for today."

Eren nods, saying, "Alright, sir." After a few moments of following Levi's gaze, she recalls something. "Did... did Edward call us Erwin's 'wild dogs'?" 

"Oh my god, I was just thinking about that," Levi says, turning to look at Eren with a somewhat amused expression. "So weird, right? Like out of all the insults he could have used, why that insult?"

"I mean, he could have called us bitches, for example," Eren says. "I feel like that would have made more sense-" 

"Totally would have made more sense," agrees Levi.

Then they stand there for a while awkwardly, trying to act natural even though every person who walks by them stops and gapes as if Eren was some kind of exhibit. 

Eren tries to think of something cool and witty to say to Levi, but anything she thinks of seems stupid. Her stomach rumbles with hunger.

"Excuse me," a woman says, stopping in front of them. She looks to be about Levi's age, but she couldn't be more different than Levi. She's only an inch or two shorter than Eren, and quite plump. Her dress is far too pink and fluffy. She curtsies shallowly and says, "Lady Penelope." 

"Captain Levi of the Survey Corps," Levi replies, curtsying as well.

Eren starts to curtsy and say her name as well, but Lady Penelope interrupts with a, "Sorry for bothering you, Captain, but I wanted to ask you if it's ever bitten you?"

Eren's relieved to see that Levi looks just as confused as she herself feels.

"Uh... sorry, what?" says Levi.

"Oh, you know," the woman says, laughing a bit nervously, "The titan... thing. The Survey Corp's new weapon. I don't want to talk about it too much, considering it's standing right here." 

This sends Eren's brain reeling. Her throat feels tight, her face hot with embarrassment. She opens her mouth to object, but all that comes out is a choking noise.

This only makes the woman glance at her with pity in her shallow eyes and say, "Oh dear, can it even speak?" 

And Eren is going to cry, she's definitely going to cry, she's going to sob right here and now-

"Yes, madam," Levi replies, and ooh, she sounds furious, more angry than Eren's ever heard her. "Eren Jaeger, that's her name, by the way, can speak. She may have the ability to turn into a titan, but she is a perfectly sentient young woman." 

"Oh!" Lady Penelope says, surprised. "I heard in the paper that, er, Eren needed to be trained like a dog, because her mind  was just empty of anything but savagery."

"I said she needed to be trained like a dog," admits Levi, sounding a bit sickened as she looks down at her feet. Then she resumes eye contact with Penelope and says in a much firmer voice, "But that doesn't mean she is one. I’d say that about any teenage cadet.”

Penelope opens her mouth to reply, but just then the sound of a trumpet rings out, coming from right where the king is sitting. The music dies down, and everyone looks to the man playing the trumpet. He's dressed in the same red-and-gold as the guards, but his dress is a little fancier. "Attention," he says loudly. "If everyone will make their way to the dining-room, dinner will be served." People voice their approval as the crowd starts to move into the next room.

"Oops!" squeaks Penelope, "Must dash; I'm positively famished.  Absolutely lovely talking to you, Captain Levi." With one last nervous glance at Eren, she picks up her skirts and heads into the dining room. 

Eren stands there, watching the poofy pink dress disappear into the crowd, listening to the blood pound in her ears.

She jumps when she feels a cool hand pressing through the thin fabric of her sleeve, tightening around her bicep.

"Eren," Levi says, her voice fierce. Eren turns to look at Levi, but Levi's turned her head away as she speaks. "I... you, I mean- fuck..." 

"We need to go eat," Eren says dumbly. Levi's hand is still on her arm.

"Not if you don't want to," Levi says, finally looking up at her. Her jaw is set firm, Eren notices. "Eren, this was asking a lot of you. If you want to leave-"

"We need to go eat," Eren repeats. Levi now is regarding her as if she has completely lost it, so she shakes her head slightly, getting rid of the fog. "No, Le- Captain. I'm fine. I'll be fine. I'm not gonna get hurt by this. I know that I’m a monster, it’s alright. This'll all just wash over me." She's not sure who she's trying to reassure here, herself or Levi. "Anyway, we have a job to do. We need funding, right?"

Levi sighs. "You're right," she admits. "I really want to beat the shit out of that puffy pink bitch. But you're right. Let's go." As she steps forward, she seems to realise she's still holding Eren's bicep quite tightly. "Oh," she says, letting it go and allowing Eren's circulation to flow freely once again.

As they follow the last trickles of people into the dining room, Eren swears she hears Levi mumble, "You are not a monster."

But it could just be her imagination. The people around them are talking loudly, and the music is still playing. She's probably just hearing things.

"By the way," Levi says as they enter the dining room, "Be careful with the food. It's gonna be the best food you'll ever have in your life, but eat it slowly and don't stuff yourself, your stomach isn't used to anything near that rich."

"I understand, si- holy _shit,_ " Eren says.

The dining room is just as grandiose as the main ballroom, but it's filled with long tables and chairs, covered in fine china and fancy cutlery. But Eren is exclaiming at the large table in the corner nearest to her: the table covered in food.

For a brief moment, she wonders why she and Armin ever wasted time talking of the ocean when a wonder like this has existed the whole time. That's how good this food looks. It's blowing her mind how good this food looks. This food looks so good that it's almost too beautiful to eat.

Of course, she has no idea what a lot of it actually _is_ , but she knows it's gonna taste delicious.

Like a zombie, she slowly moves towards the food, but is jolted when Levi grabs her bicep and jerks her back. "Not yet," she mumbles. “We gotta find our table first, and then we’ll be served.”

Reluctantly, Eren follows Levi as they make their way down the length of the table furthest to the left, until they get to the end, where Erwin is sitting across from two empty seats at the very edge of the table. "Hello again," he says as they sit down, Levi taking the seat at the very edge across from Erwin.

Eren's a little nervous at this seating arrangement, because it means she's sitting across from and next to people she doesn't know. 

Noticing this, Erwin introduces her to the man across from her and the woman next to her. They’re brother and sister, both nobility. The woman is all smiles, reaching out to shake her hand and telling her how lovely she looks in her dress. Eren decides that she likes this woman. 

The man, on the other hand, definitely looks like he’s nervous to be so close to the titan shifter, until his sister scolds him for being impolite, and then everything goes smoothly, more or less. With the subtle but firm presence of Levi by her side, Eren feels safe enough, and carries on a conversation with the both of them while Levi and Erwin mutter to each other.

Suddenly, she looks up to see waiters coming around with pitchers and bottles. The pitchers are clear crystal, the bottles are dark glass. As Eren watches the waiters pour liquid into everyone’s glasses, she sees that the pitchers contain water, and the bottles contain red wine.

As a waiter makes it to their end of the table, Eren watches him pour water into her glass. Then he moves to pour wine into her other cup (which she remembers Levi calling a wine glass in their lesson). But as he does so his hands must shake, because several crimson drops land on the table, and one lands on Eren’s hand.

“I’m terribly sorry, miss!” he gasps, stepping backward and bowing. 

“You should be sorry,” Levi says coldly before Eren can respond. “Whatever they’re paying you is way too much. That bottle isn’t anywhere near full.” 

“Sorry!” the man says again, but he’s not even looking at Levi. He’s eyeing Eren fearfully, as if expecting her to attack him.

In an instant, Eren realises why he spilled the wine. And she _would_ be angry, but… the man isn’t some lofty noble. He’s just a worker, a boy with freckles and curly hair who looks about as old as she is. And he’s not judging her, so much as he’s frightened. She doesn’t want to scare anyone. 

“It’s ok,” she says gently. “No harm done.”

“Y-you’re sure?” the waiter says hesitantly.

Eren nods, smiles at him. “Yeah, man, no worries. I’m clumsy as fu- um, I’m really clumsy, so believe me, I understand.”

The waiter visibly relaxes, and smiles weakly back at her. “D’you want me to get you another napkin, or something?” he asks.

“Nah, don’t worry about it,” Eren says. She carefully swipes the wine off of her hand with her napkin. “There we go, all gone. Neither of us are paying for the tablecloth, right?” she adds with a wink. 

The waiter laughs softly. “Yeah… Thanks a lot, um…”

“Eren Jaeger,” Eren says. “And you are?”

“Samson Bodt.” Right as he’s saying this, Samson looks up to see that he’s the only waiter left. “Oh! Oh, geez. Sorry, Eren, I gotta-“ 

“No worries!” says Eren.

As soon as Samson finishes filling up the rest of the glasses, he says, “Nice to meet you!” and hurries back to the kitchens. 

Looking back to her companions, Eren sees Erwin and Levi looking at her. “What?” she says, suddenly self-conscious. 

“Well done, Eren,” Erwin says, looking pleased.

Before she can ask what exactly she did well, Levi says grouchily, “You were too easy on him. Brat was too busy eyeing you to pour the drink.”

“I’m pretty sure he was just nervous,” Eren says. “He seemed nice.”

In any case, the waiters are now coming around and placing bowls of soup in front of each person and baskets of bread rolls in the center of each table, and that’s enough to completely draw Eren’s attention. The soup is a beautiful golden colour with chunky vegetables, and the bread is white and warm. There’s even little plates of butter shaped like the various arms of the military corps, which Levi clearly thinks is cheesy; but Eren thinks it’s kind of cute. She devours the soup as politely as she can, savoring the taste. 

After the soup, there's a salad with vegetables every colour of the rainbow, Eren has never really enjoyed vegetables, but even she has to enjoy the crispness and freshness of it.

After the salad, there's the main course. "The meat is steak, and the white stuff is mashed potatoes," Levi mutters into Eren's ear. First Eren slices into the steak, then dips it into the potatoes and takes a bite.

It's like she's having her first orgasm all over again.

"Oh my god," she moans, closing her eyes in rapture.

"Keep your voice down, brat," says Levi, sounding scandalized.

Eren turns and sees Levi averting her eyes, cheeks slightly reddened. "Sorry, Captain," she says sheepishly. "I just... I just realised I'm going to marry mashed potatoes."

Levi looks at her for a moment before letting out a distinctly unladylike snort. "I'm picturing mushy white lumps of children with big blue-green eyes."

"That's gross, ewww!" says Eren, laughing out loud before she can help herself. 

"Ladies, would you mind keeping your voices down?"

Eren turns to see Erwin frowning at them. In this moment, he reminds her so much of a cranky dad that she can't help but break into a new round of laughter.

"My bad, Dadwin," Levi says, but she's grinning slightly.

 Erwin shakes his head. "Honestly," he says, "The two of you are bad influences on each other."

But he doesn't sound upset. Levi just rolls her eyes and tells him to fuck off, and Eren feels stupidly, deliriously happy.

That feeling of happiness lingers on throughout the meal. Finally, Eren cleans her plate and sits back in her chair with a sigh. Her dress feels somewhat tight around her stomach, but she can't bring herself to regret eating all that food.

"Will there be dessert?" she asks Levi.

Levi nods. "After we've danced for a while, they'll bring it out."

"Dance," says Eren, her good-food feeling ebbing away. 

"Yeah, dance," repeats Levi. "You forget about that?" 

"I was trying to," Eren says.

"Don't worry," says Levi. "You've practiced." As she says this, suddenly she hears the orchestra start to play and people start standing up, filing back into the main room. "That's our cue," Levi says, standing and adjusting her dress delicately. 

They make their way back into the main room, which now boasts a full orchestra against one side of the floor. People have already started dancing, 

"Oh, jeez," Eren says softly, feeling her palms start to sweat.

"You'll be fine," says Levi. 

"I'll trip on my dress and fall on a noble," Eren says.

"You may not be a ballerina, but you're much more graceful than most of these creepy old men."

Eren feels her stomach lurch again. "Captain, I don't want to dance with any creepy old men," she says desperately.

Levi's brow furrows at this. After a pause, she starts to say, "Eren, I... just know that-"

"Creepy old men? Well! I guess I know when I’m not wanted.”

Quickly Eren turns around, and feels a wave of relief when she sees Commander Dot Pixis walking towards them, a large smile on his face.

She can’t help but like Pixis, no matter how eccentric he may be. The man saved her life, and Mikasa and Armin’s lives, and then trusted her enough to let her save Trost as well. 

Plus, he makes her laugh. He’s like the weird grandpa she’s never had.

After making the obligatory greetings to Erwin and Levi, Pixis turns to Eren. “It’s been so long!” he says. “How are you?”

Eren can’t help but smile as Pixis kisses her hand. “Very good, Commander, thank you,” she says. “How are you?” 

“A little full, but not too full to dance,” Pixis says, winking at her. “Speaking of dancing… I was wondering if I may perhaps steal your first ever dance at your first ever ball?” 

Eren looks over to Erwin and Levi for their approval. Erwin nods and smiles. Levi rolls her eyes and looks away. _I’m… going to assume that’s a yes,_ Eren thinks. 

“I’d love to dance,” she says, turning back to Pixis.

They move out onto the floor. At first Eren is nervous, but Pixis is patient with her as she adjusts to the tempo of the music. After a brief period of awkwardness, they’re dancing properly. Slowly, but properly.

It’s nice to dance to actual music.

“Don’t be nervous,” Pixis tells her.

“How am I supposed to not be nervous?” Eren asks, looking at him balefully. “Everyone here doesn’t think I’m human and is waiting for me to explode, or break a vase, or something.”

“Yeah, and they’re waiting for me to get drunk and embarrass myself in front of everyone,” says Pixis cheerfully. “But I don’t care what they think.”

“Oh,” says Eren.

She wants to ask him how she could possibly not care about what everyone thinks while the Survey Corps is desperate for their money, but the song they’re dancing to ends, and Eren must find a new partner to dance with. As per tradition, she looks to her right for the nearest man, and finds a timid looking man from the Garrison.

But he seems to summon his courage and bows to her. She curtsies back, and they get in position to dance. He’s a decent dancer, and it works out fine.

After this, Eren dances with a few more men. Some smile at her and play nice, some look terrified, and some look disgusted, but all dances go off without any major issues.

One man spends their entire dance trying to pump her for information about her shifting and the Survey Corps. But Eren remembers what Levi told her, and does her best to evade his questions.

After this, she dances with a man who won’t look her in the eye, and barely puts his hands on her waist as if fearing she’ll infect him with some kind of awful disease.

Eren is very relieved when that song ends. Then she looks to her right and sees a tall man with wavy blonde hair and crafty eyes. "Hello, there," he says with a grin.

Eren doesn't like him.

"Good evening," she says, and they both curtsy and bow. He, apparently, is called Lord Graham.

He kisses her hand, and it takes too long. "I have been fairly dying of curiosity, ever since I heard that you were going to be attending this ball," he says. "Tell me, were you nervous? I imagine that certain people at this ball have been treating you with less kindness than you deserve." 

Maybe he's not so bad. "Yeah, well... They're just afraid of the monster," says Eren, as Lord Graham puts his arms around her and they begin to dance.

"Oh, they're just fools," Lord Graham says dismissively. "You are most certainly not a monster. You're a lovely young woman."

“Thanks,” says Eren. She’s not a fan of how tightly Graham is gripping her waist, but she supposes she can grin and bear it for one song.

“Tell me,” says Graham, “What are your plans for when the ball is over? Any afterparties you’re going to attend?”

“Oh, no,” Eren says. “Just going back to the outer walls. Gotta keep fighting the good fight, and all that.”

“Such a shame,” Graham says, leading them towards the edge of the room. “I was hoping to spend more time with you, my sweet.”

_‘My sweet’? Gag._

“Well, we can’t always get what we want, unfortunately,” says Eren. Her smile becomes more strained as she realises that Graham is taking her into an alcove off the main room, and not many people are near them.

“But sometimes we can,” Graham says, and Eren feels a hand creep down and place itself firmly on her ass. The song is slowing to its conclusion, but Graham seems to have no intention of letting her go.

Now there’s a problem. Now there’s going to be trouble.

Eren is fully confident in her ability to knock this pervert out with her superb combat skills; that isn’t the issue. The issue is that she’s very well aware of her surroundings. If she does knock Graham out, all the other party guests will see is a monster attacking a harmless noble.

But her only other option is letting this creep fondle her for the rest of the ball.

Just as she reaches this grim realisation, Eren hears a shrill voice calling: “Hellooooo!”

Both Eren and Graham turn to see the owner of the voice. It’s Hitch, coming towards them with a big grin on her face. She’s followed by Marlowe, who looks angry.

Eren never thought she’d feel so relieved to see the military police, but she supposes there’s a first time for everything.

“Sorry for interrupting your talk, Lord Graham,” Hitch says, executing a sharp military bow. “But Eren’s been summoned.”

“Summoned by who?” asks Graham, glaring at Hitch peevishly. His hands are still on Eren. 

“Her commanding officers,” Marlowe says bluntly. “Please unhand the lady.”

“No need to be so rude, Cadet,” says Graham, letting go of Eren so roughly that she nearly falls. “I’m sure your commander wouldn’t appreciate it if I were to-“

“With all due respect, my lord, Commander Dawk ‘wouldn’t appreciate’ creepy lords molesting young women,” Hitch says, her smile turning poisonous. “Shall we go, Eren?” 

“Yes, let’s,” Eren says. As they walk away, she can’t help but turn and give Graham a glare. He’s got his mouth open like an idiot. 

“You ok?” Hitch asks Eren as soon as they’re out of Graham’s earshot.

“Fine,” Eren says. “Thank you so much. I couldn’t think of an escape other than breaking that fucker’s neck.”

 “I’m sorely tempted to do that myself,” Marlowe says through gritted teeth. “That pervert… he should be locked up.”

“Every girl in the MP knows to watch out for him,” Hitch informs Eren. “Rumor has it that he’s involved in the underground slave trade.”

“Well thank you for rescuing me,” Eren says, rubbing the aching spot on her side where Graham gripped her.

“Don’t thank us,” Marlowe says. “Thank your captain. She was the one who alerted us when Graham started pulling you over to the corner.”

“Captain Levi?” says Eren, right as she realises they’ve made their way over to Levi, who’s standing on the dance floor looking as if she’s about to commit murder.

Levi isn't even looking at Eren. Instead, she's glaring at Hitch and Marlowe. "You call that hurrying?" she says in a low voice. Her fists are clenched. "Too fucking slow, you shits." 

"Hey, she's alright, isn't she?" Hitch says with an easy smile. Levi's glare intensifies, and Hitch pales and snaps a salute. "Sir!" 

"Yeah, I'm alright," Eren says to fill the awkward silence. 

"Well, we're glad," says Marlowe, putting a hand on Hitch's arm. "But we have to go back on patrol, right, Hitch?"

Hitch rolls her eyes, allowing herself to be tugged away. "Yeah, yeah," she says. "Catch you later, titan-girl!" 

"And inform us if you need further assistance," Marlowe adds. 

"Thanks, see you later!" Eren says, waving and smiling at them as they disappear into the crowd.

Turning back to Levi, she says, "Thank you for saving me, sir. That guy was-"

 "Those brats are incompetent," Levi says, "And you were an idiot to let yourself be drawn away from the crowd like that." 

Eren feels irritation bubble up in her. Levi gets so pissy about the weirdest things. Shouldn't she be happy that Eren is ok? "I was being courteous like I was told to be," she says. 

"Lower your voice," Levi says, looking around at the crowd. "You're going to cause a scene."

" _I'm_ going to cause a scene?" Eren repeats. Now she's angry. "How is any of this me causing a scene?"

"You were... I couldn't..." Levi's voice trails off, and she groans and and pinches the bridge of her nose. Her anger seems to deflate, until she just looks sheepish.

"Sir?" Eren says, confused.

Then Levi shocks her by straightening up, looking into her eyes, and saying, "I'm sorry, that was my fault."

"What?" says Eren, now completely astounded.

"I said I'm sorry!" Levi repeats quickly. A blush has formed on her cheeks. She takes a deep breath and says, "That wasn't your fault at all. It wasn't those cadets' fault either. It was that fucking piece of shit's fault, and it was my fault for flippin' out because I was... I was worried."

"Oh," Eren says. She's kind of at a loss for words, here. Levi was... worried? About her? 

"Yeah," says Levi. 

They look at each other for what seems like forever.

Finally Levi clears her throat and looks away, craning her neck and searching the ballroom. “I’m finding Erwin,” she says, “And we're leaving."

"What?" Eren says for probably the fiftieth time today.

"We're done here," says Levi. 

But when they find Erwin flirting with a flock of young ladies in poofy skirts and lacy bodices, he says otherwise. 

"No, Levi," he says, frowning as he fixes his hair (rumpled into an attractive bedhead by one of the young ladies). "We can't leave yet and you know that. We agreed to stay for three hours."

"But-" Levi says.

"Levi," says Erwin, and he looks at Levi meaningfully.

Levi sighs. "Fine," she says.

For the rest of their time at the ball, Eren sticks to Levi's side. It's a mutual agreement: Levi wanting Eren in her sights at all times, and Eren feeling sick at the thought of encountering another Lord Graham.

They talk to other people occasionally, or to each other, but mostly they just stand in silence. It's a comfortable silence, though. In fact, it's the most comfortable Eren has felt all night. 

As she watches the dancers swirl around the ballroom, Eren feels the oddest urge. She doesn't love dancing, doesn't feel confident in her dancing abilities. But right now, she aches to take Levi by the arm and lead her out onto the floor. She wants to dance with Levi, and wants everyone around them to watch and marvel at how graceful they are, or at least how graceful Levi is.

But women don't dance with women at fancy balls.

Even though she’s quite keen on leaving the ball as soon as possible, Eren can’t help but enjoy dessert. She fills her plate with fancy cakes and puddings, and although she can’t eat every bite for fear of upsetting her stomach (since she’s not used to such rich food), she manages to sample everything, and everything is delicious. Especially the chocolate cream pie. 

After that, Eren and Levi go back to standing and waiting, occasionally chatting with various nobles that approach them. 

Finally, though, Erwin comes over to them and nods, and it’s time to go. 

They say their goodbyes to anyone who passes them as they leave, although many people still turn up their noses at Eren.

The cooled evening air is wonderful to breathe in, after the stuffed heat of the ballroom.

Erwin speaks to a man outside, their carriage is brought around, and one by one they get inside it, Erwin allowing Eren and Levi to go in before him. 

They take the same seats as they had for the trip to the castle, Eren sitting next to Levi and Levi sitting across from Erwin. The carriage door shuts, and begins the long trip back to the outer walls. 

"So, how was it?" Erwin asks with a smile.

Levi and Eren groan in unison.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I LOVE Hitch and Marlowe, in case you haven't noticed.)
> 
> The next chapter should be the last one!

**Author's Note:**

> I would absolutely adore any comments, questions, or critiques you'd like to give me... whether on here or on my [blog](http://erenjaegrrr.tumblr.com/) on tumblr dot com! I'm also tracking the tag fic: wonderful tonight.
> 
> Thank you for reading!!! ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* \\(◕‿◕✿)/ *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧


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